SOME PEOPLE YOU KNOW ARE TRUSTWORTHY…SIMON IS ONE OF THAT KIND.
alan skeoch dec. 9, 2025
Simon Cotter was president of our student council…a good leader. Good to be with. Fun. Lots of ideas. Independent…free wheeling.
So when he asked speak to me privately I sensed it was trouble.
“Sir, I’m in a bit of a jam.” “Unusual for you, Simon.” “Have you ever been to Hawaii? We need you desperately.”
Simon thought he could organize a school trip on his own. Thirty students had been working all summer. Saving their money for a March break trip to Hawaii, The travel company assumed the trip was OK…i.e. had teacher chaperones. Simon was Simon…a free thinker. When the travel company discovered otherwise it was about to pull the rug out and take student deposits. He needed a chaperone.
“OK Simon I will be your chaperone as long as 5 others come…all paying their own way, Marjorie and our boys Kevin, 8 years old, Andrew, 4 years old…and Mr and Mrs. Champion, British exchange teachers.’’ “Great sir, we needed a few more anyway,,,pack your bathing suit.”
Once the trip became known, several staff members got alarmed…
“Alan, you are asking for trouble. Simon may have Parkdale street kids coming….no telling what they might do.” etc. etc.
(Parkdale street kids indeed were on the trip. They knew how to avoid trouble…best kind of kid to have on a trip. I did not like the term ’street kid’…revealed an upper crust attitude. Our principal was supportive. She trusted me. I trusted SIMON. His mom’s a trustee and his dad the a local anglican minister.)
“Alan, the purpose of this trip is not education. The purpose is not, music history, art. The purpose is fun and fun can be very dangerous.”
“ I trust Simon. He knows the risks.”
Our boys, got out of bed early each morning to visit al the girls…loved them.
EVENTS
1) kids did not have a lot of money so were quite content to lounge on Waikiki beach with our children. Exotic experience. Middle of vast Pacfic Ocean. Lounging on ancient volcano with live volcano not far away.
2) Trip to battleship Arizona where so many sailors were entombed.
3) “What is that helicopter doing?. I asked a guy bobbing up and down on gigantic waves. All Parkdale swimmers were riding the waves with me…all save one!
’The Helicopter is spotting sharks and catching swimmers that get caught in the UNDERTOW!” Yikes! Get back to the beach.”I yelled,” and everyone save one did so. Erwin Beltran came along head first planting himself among the millions of coral shards. Marjorie and the boys unplugged Erwin. Lost his contact lenses.
“Do a count…should be 17” “Count 16, sir…” “Simon is missing,”
Sinking feeling…key member lost to shark maybe or, worse still pulled far offshore by current.
“Here he comes…bloody back.” “Sorry sir…got caught in a coral grotto down the beach…..wave pushed me in ….hard to get out… scraped my back on coral but I am fine…sorry to cause alarm.
There were undertow warnings but we never saw them…so exciting to swim in an ocean wave generated by the vast Pacific ocean.
THAT’S IT…ONLY ONE ADVENTURE….ONLY ONE I HEARD ABOUT ANYWAY.
alan skeoch dec. 13, 2-25
QUESTION; Suppose Simon asked you to go as a chaperone…would you take the risks involved?
If you want to scare yourself then talk to an insurance company,
alan skeoch dec. 9, 2025
Simon Cotter was president of our student council…a good leader. Good to be with. Fun. Lots of ideas. Independent…free wheeling.
So when he asked speak to me privately I sensed it was trouble.
“Sir, I’m in a bit of a jam.” “Unusual for you, Simon.” “Have you ever been to Hawaii? We need you desperately.”
Simon thought he could organize a school trip on his own. Thirty students had been working all summer. Saving their money for a March break trip to Hawaii, The travel company assumed the trip was OK…i.e. had teacher chaperones. Simon was Simon…a free thinker. When the travel company discovered otherwise it was about to pull the rug out and take student deposits. He needed a chaperone.
“OK Simon I will be your chaperone as long as 5 others come…all paying their own way, Marjorie and our boys Kevin, 8 years old, Andrew, 4 years old…and Mr and Mrs. Champion, British exchange teachers.’’ “Great sir, we needed a few more anyway,,,pack your bathing suit.”
Once the trip became known, several staff members got alarmed…
“Alan, you are asking for trouble. Simon may have Parkdale street kids coming….no telling what they might do.” etc. etc.
(Parkdale street kids indeed were on the trip. They knew how to avoid trouble…best kind of kid to have on a trip. I did not like the term ’street kid’…revealed an upper crust attitude. Our principal was supportive. She trusted me. I trusted SIMON. His mom’s a trustee and his dad the a local anglican minister.)
“Alan, the purpose of this trip is not education. The purpose is not, music history, art. The purpose is fun and fun can be very dangerous.”
“ I trust Simon. He knows the risks.”
Our boys, got out of bed early each morning to visit al the girls…loved them.
EVENTS
1) kids did not have a lot of money so were quite content to lounge on Waikiki beach with our children. Exotic experience. Middle of vast Pacfic Ocean. Lounging on ancient volcano with live volcano not far away.
2) Trip to battleship Arizona where so many sailors were entombed.
3) “What is that helicopter doing?. I asked a guy bobbing up and down on gigantic waves. All Parkdale swimmers were riding the waves with me…all save one!
’The Helicopter is spotting sharks and catching swimmers that get caught in the UNDERTOW!” Yikes! Get back to the beach.”I yelled,” and everyone save one did so. Erwin Beltran came along head first planting himself among the millions of coral shards. Marjorie and the boys unplugged Erwin. Lost his contact lenses.
“Do a count…should be 17” “Count 16, sir…” “Simon is missing,”
Sinking feeling…key member lost to shark maybe or, worse still pulled far offshore by current.
“Here he comes…bloody back.” “Sorry sir…got caught in a coral grotto down the beach…..wave pushed me in ….hard to get out… scraped my back on coral but I am fine…sorry to cause alarm.
There were undertow warnings but we never saw them…so exciting to swim in an ocean wave generated by the vast Pacific ocean.
THAT’S IT…ONLY ONE ADVENTURE….ONLY ONE I HEARD ABOUT ANYWAY.
alan skeoch dec. 13, 2-25
QUESTION; Suppose Simon asked you to go as a chaperone…would you take the risks involved?
If you want to scare yourself then talk to an insurance company,
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